Jimmy McGill
|Last Appearance = |BCS First Appearance = |Aliases = Slippin' Jimmy Saul Goodman Gene Viktor |Birthdate = c. 1961 |gallery=Saul Goodman }} James "Jimmy" Morgan McGill, better known by his professional alias Saul Goodman, is a former criminal lawyer and the former principal attorney of Saul Goodman & Associates. He operated out of a cheap strip mall office and ran over-the-top late night TV ads advising potential clients they'd "Better Call Saul!" when in trouble with the law, promising "I fight for YOU, Albuquerque!" While his late-night commercial ads seemed tacky and cheap, Saul was an incredibly effective lawyer, using illegal tactics and dirty schemes to make sure his clients came out on top. He is the protagonist of the spin-off Breaking Bad series, ''Better Call Saul'', wherein the events six-years prior to Breaking Bad are explained, though the series also delves into events that occur after the Walter White story. Saul serves as the lawyer and adviser for Walter White and Jesse Pinkman, getting them out of several difficult situations over the course of their drug business operations. Dressed in flashy suits, Saul maintains extensive connections within the criminal underworld, and serves as a go-between connecting drug distributors, evidence removers, impersonators, and other criminals-for-hire. Saul arranges for Walt to launder drug money through Walter White Jr.'s website (SaveWalterWhite.com) and dispatches a Cleaner (Mike Ehrmantraut) to Jesse's apartment to attend to Jesse and dispose of any incriminating evidence after his girlfriend Jane overdoses. Despite his sleazy, flamboyant appearance and mannerisms — punctuated by his outrageous low-budget TV commercials — Saul is a highly competent lawyer who is able to solve problems and find loopholes in order to protect his clients. He is also reluctant to be associated with violence or murder. He has served as an adviser for Walter, Jesse, Mike, and even for Skyler White, whom he also helped acquire a car wash in order to launder Walter's drug money. As Walter began to trust Saul, Saul became consigliere to Walt in his drug empire, laundering Walt's drug money for the White family. Saul expanded Walt's profits by arranging for the latter to supply crystal meth in bulk to the Albuquerque Mafia, through his contact Mike Ehrmantraut, who was himself consigliere to the mob boss of Albuquerque, Gustavo Fring. History Background information Jimmy was born to Ruth and Charles McGill, Sr in the small city of Cicero, Illinois. He has an older brother, Chuck McGill, who graduated college and went on to become a successful lawyer in Albuquerque, New Mexico. When he was young, Jimmy worked for his father at his small corner store and watched as scam artist after scam artist would fleece his father repeatedly. After one of the artists offered young Jimmy a life lesson about wolves and sheep, Jimmy caved in and began stealing money from the family till . His actions eventually led to the bankruptcy of the store. Three months later, Jimmy's father died, and according to Chuck, nobody cried harder than Jimmy at the funeral. In his teenage years, Jimmy began to play his own scams to get quick money, which granted him the nickname "Slippin' Jimmy" for those who were close to him. In one of his most famous scams, Slippin' Jimmy would find the most slippery patches of ice every winter, stage a fall, and earn himself a fair amount of money . In one of his other scams, Slippin' Jimmy (using his future alias "Saul Goodman") works with his closest friend Marco Pasternak to trick others into trading cash for fake Rolex watches . In addition, Jimmy also ran an illicit ID forgery business in school . After school, Jimmy was married at one point, but his wife cheated on him and they got divorced. One day, Slippin' Jimmy encountered his ex-wife's lover at the local Dairy Queen, and decided to perform a "Chicago Sunroof" (defecating through the sunroof of a car) as revenge. Unbeknownst to Jimmy, however, the man's children were in the back seat of the car. Worse, Jimmy's enemy had ties to the local prosecutors, and Jimmy was quickly brought in by the police on charges of property damage, assault, and sex offenses. Chuck traveled from Albuquerque back to their hometown to visit Jimmy at the request of their mother. Jimmy begged Chuck to use his magic and make the charges disappear with the help of legal loopholes. Although originally reluctant, Chuck agreed to help after Jimmy acknowledged that, if he didn't get out of his situation his life would be over. Chuck warned Jimmy not to make a fool of him if he got back out and Jimmy vowed to change and do anything for Chuck . Chuck agreed, but with a price: Jimmy was to leave Cicero and move to Albuquerque with him, to work in a legitimate job. Jimmy reluctantly agreed and was subsequently acquitted due to Chuck's intervention. After saying farewell to Marco, Jimmy honored his brother's request, flying out of Cicero the same day to live with him and make a living through legitimate ways. The only time Jimmy would return to his hometown was for his mother's funeral, about seven years after he moved to Albuquerque . Jimmy began working in the mail room at Hamlin, Hamlin & McGill, where he met and befriended many people, including Rebecca, Howard Hamlin, Ernesto, Brenda, Francis Scheff, Burt, Trina, and Gene. Most importantly, at HHM he also met and began a semi-romantic relationship with Kimberly "Kim" Wexler. Prompted by her achievement of passing the bar, Jimmy eventually pursued and earned his own law degree online from the University of American Samoa, to the delight of all. However, Chuck secretly rejected Jimmy's achievement, damning it as yet another of Jimmy's quick "shortcut" schemes. Refusing to view Jimmy as a real lawyer, and frustrated that his younger brother earned a law degree so easily while he had to work hard his entire life to be where he is, Chuck covertly blocked Jimmy from becoming a partner at Hamlin, Hamlin & McGill. When Howard was forced to deliver the news to Jimmy, Jimmy mistakenly blamed him for the decision , . Shortly thereafter, Jimmy quit HHR to become a solo practitioner. Better Call Saul 'Season 1' When the series begins, Jimmy is working hard at his practice, but enjoying little success. He sleeps in his office, which is located in the back of a nail salon. He mostly works for the court as a public defender for $700 a case and is struggling with debt. He takes care of Chuck, who refuses to go outside, due to his self-diagnosed Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity disorder, a disease whose actual existence is unproven in reality. While working in court he meets Mike Ehrmantraut who works there as a parking attendant. After a particularly grueling day in which he loses a sex offense case (and is "shorted" by the county clerk), loses potential client Craig Kettleman to his rivals Hamlin, Hamlin & McGill, and fends off an injury scam from Cal Lindholm and Lars Lindholm, Jimmy decides to return to his shady techniques to level the playing field. He enlists the Lindholms in an attempt to win the Kettlemans' favor. The plan backfires, however, when the twins mistakenly target the grandmother of Tuco Salamanca, who captures them along with Jimmy, intending to murder them all. Utilizing his silver tongue, Jimmy persuades Tuco to spare them, but is unable to prevent the gang leader from crippling Cal and Lars with broken legs. Shortly thereafter, Jimmy receives a visit from Ignacio "Nacho" Varga, one of Tuco's lieutenants. Nacho, who overheard Jimmy's plan to strongarm the Kettlemans into business, wants to steal the money embezzled by the Kettlemans. Realizing Nacho is very likely intending violence against the Kettlemans to achieve his goals, Jimmy attempts to warn off the family, first by hinting to Kim, who is now in charge of the Kettlemans' case, then by sending a distorted phone message to the Kettlemans themselves. When the Kettleman family disappears, Jimmy is brought in by the police, first as a suspect, then as the appointed attorney for Nacho himself, who has been marked as the prime suspect. A furious Nacho warns Jimmy to correct the situation, or face deadly consequences. Stressed by the encounter, Jimmy inadvertently escalates the matter by getting into a confrontation with Mike over a validation dispute, but in the process figures out the Kettlemans staged their own abduction to evade further scrutiny. Tracking down the Kettlemans, Jimmy persuades them to return to their home, but accepts a $30,000 payment from them as a "retainer" (in truth, as hush money for keeping quiet about the Kettlemans' stashed loot, indeed stolen from the city treasury). Using this payoff, he begins a publicity stunt by creating a deliberately plagarized version of HHR's advertisement featuring himself made up to resemble Howard. When Howard proceeds to file an injunction for copyright infringement, Jimmy allows himself to lose, though in actuality, he intends to use the incident to garner public support through the media. An incident in which he saves the life of a worker hired to take down the sign actually gives Jimmy the exposure as a media darling that he was aiming for After several abortive consultations, Jimmy enjoys some small successes with some elderly clients, leading Kim to suggest he consider practicing elder law. Their musings are interrupted, however, when Jimmy recieves an emergency call from Howard - Chuck has had an altercation with the police and has been hospitalized. Rushing to the hospital, Jimmy fends off doctors, security, and Howard himself in order to bring his brother home. At Chuck's residence, Jimmy sees a copy of the newspaper he hid from Chuck, with himself on the front page. Realizing his culpability in Chuck's collapse, Jimmy explains his actions as a "little bit of razzmatazz" and reassures Chuck that as he now has clients, the incident will not be repeated. . Jimmy eventually decides to go into elder law and help old people. He redesigns his image around "a young Paul Newman dressed like Matlock," recreating the classic suit style worn by Andy Griffith. He begins helping out at retirement homes, where he helps pass out meals (which of course are stamped with his contact information and ads), hosts bingo games, and slowly builds a growing clientele. When he visits the Sandpiper Crossing retirement home, he learns that the workers are scamming the residents by overcharging them. Jimmy goes through their dumpsters and takes their shredded documents as evidence against them. Chuck sees Jimmy's case and convinces him to take the case to Hamlin, Hamlin, & McGill since the case is too big to handle single-handedly, much to Jimmy's dismay. At this point, Chuck begins to shrug off most of his illness and begins to go outside a little more. The night before Jimmy and Chuck head to HHM to deliver the case, Chuck secretly goes outside and uses Jimmy's phone to call Howard. During the meeting, Howard agrees to take the case but refuse to hire Jimmy as an HHM laywer. Jimmy leave, angrily refusing to take the deal. After seeing Kim who urges him to accept, he goes to confront his brother, after realising that something was wrong with his phone. At his house, Chuck confesses to be the one behind the fact that he was never hired at HHM, not Howard. He tells Jimmy that he never considered him a real lawyer, claiming that allowing Jimmy a law degree is like giving a machine gun to a chimpanzee. Heartbroken, Jimmy storms out of the house, telling Chuck that he will not provide for him anymore. The next day, he hands the case over to HHM, apologizing to Howard. He then hosts a Bingo game at the nursing home where he suffers a nervous breakdown, graphically recollecting the time he took revenge on a man who owed him money and slept with his wife (the Chicago Sunroof Incident). Throwing down the microphone, he walks away in disgust. He goes back to his hometown of Cicero and reconnects with his friend Marco. Together they start doing scams again. After a whole week Jimmy says that he has to go back to his clients but Marco insists that they do one last scam together. Sadly, Marco died of a heart attack that night, right in front of him. At the funeral Marco's mother gives Jimmy Marco's old ring, as he was his best friend. He then receives a phone call from Kim telling him that a big Santa Fe law firm, Davis & Main, wants to hire him, as they are joining in the Sandpiper case and need a representative. Jimmy goes to the meeting but declines the position, and talks to Mike at his booth, wondering why they gave the Kettleman money back earlier. As Mike state that his was hired to do a job and simply did it, Jimmy declares that he knows what stopped him and swears that "it's never stopping me again." He then leaves, humming the song "Smoke on the Water," like his old friend Marco used to during their time together. , Season 2 Continuing his self-righteous rant, Jimmy proceeds to continue his rebellious streak in Albuquerque, openly agitating his landlady at the nail salon, and tearing down his door sign. He rents a room at one of the high class hotels where he begins running scams on the other guests. When confronted by Kim over his new lifestyle, Jimmy persuades Kim to try it out. Stunned at first, Kim is amused when Jimmy successfully puts the move on Ken, a loudmouthed broker. One thing leads to another, and the two consummate their relationship, spending the night together. The morning after, however, Kim admonishes Jimmy to return to reality, refusing to participate in any further scams. Eventually, Jimmy decides to follow her advice, and returns to Davis and Main to accept their offer of employement. Jimmy adjusts quickly to his new status and perks at D&M, including private office (with a cocobolo desk), company car, and personal assistant. He also hits it off well with the personnel at his new workplace, and contemplates establishing a live-in relationship with Kim. The fly in the ointment presents itself, however, when Chuck, having returned to the office, begins attending the Sandpiper briefings, officially in his capacity as senior partner, but in reality, to intimidate Jimmy. A further complication arises when Mike enlists Jimmy to represent his employer Daniel Wormald, who has implicated himself in a drug deal. Jimmy successfully gets Daniel off, but is forced to fabricate evidence of a pie fetish video to do so. When he lets the story slip to Kim, she furiously chastises him for the incident. Jimmy continues a dubious recruitment campaign for the Sandpiper suit, convinced that the retirement company is continuing to block traditional methods of contact with his prospects. His plan to engage a busload of Sandpiper residents, for example, is largely successful, but attracts undue attention from Chuck and the other partners - even Kim. Jimmy then proposes a televison commercial; specially timed to reach prospects during daytime hours - a point of access Sandpiper cannot block. While Clifford Main is open to the idea, seeing a previous ad run by Davis & Main convinces Jimmy that the firm will never agree to the style or time of broadcast Jimmy needs. Taking what he feels is the initiative, Jimmy enlists his old video crew friends from college to film and air his own commercial advertising the Sandpiper suit. While a major windfall for the firm, the act immediately draws the ire of Cliff and the other partners. Jimmy immediately tries to soothe the waters with the senior partners, but is reprimanded for his actions. To his shock and disgust, he learns that Kim has also come under fire at HHM for allegedly approving of the tape, but in truth, for her association with him. Worse, Kim is furious with Jimmy over the incident, and refuses outright any offers of help in restoring her good graces at the firm. The next day, however, Jimmy confronts Chuck over Kim's demerit, only for Chuck to rebuff him, refusing even Jimmy's offer of full responsibility for the incident. Jimmy's frustrations continue to mount at Davis & Main after he is "paired" with legal assistant Erin Brill for help in the Sandpiper case - in truth, Erin has been assigned to watchdog Jimmy and force him to adhere to D&M policy. Immediately chafing under Erin's constant prodding and corrections, Jimmy dodges her as soon as he can, so that he can present Kim his latest offer: a letter of legal action against HHR for mistreatment. Kim steadfastly refuses - only she will save herself from the doghouse, she says. A further crestfallen Jimmy begins to question his decision to take his position at D&M, as Erin continues to hound his every action, hampering his progress in court and at the clerk's office. Seeing his old colleagues' and talking about the recent changes only serve to fuel the dilemna. The tensions continue to rise as D&M continues to subvert Jimmy's tactics, replacing his original ad for a more sanitized one to be played during ineffective air times. Beginning to become fed up with D&M's enslavement to policy over productivity, Jimmy begins preparations for departure. He begins sleeping in his old office at the nail salon, which he still has kept under lease. He mends the fence with Kim after she is tempted into another dupe game at the hotel. He uses a tire iron to remove the cup holder from his company car, so that his gift mug from Kim will fit. He prepares his letter of resignation to D&M, to Omar's surprise, but when he learns resigning or being fired for cause will cause him to forfeit his bonus, he decides to go for the outlandish track by dressing in gaudy suits, making horrible messes in the office, and becoming such a general nuisance to his co-workers that Clifford proceeds to fire him WITHOUT cause, thus allowing Jimmy to keep his bonuses (and his desk.) Once free of D&M, Jimmy proposes his master plan to Kim: he offers to form a joint partnership with her, sharing all expenses and costs, as well as profits. Kim is intrigued, but initally disagrees - she is not prepared to risk her career with Jimmy being the kind of lawyer he is being. She does, however, offer a counter proposal: she will go into solo practitioner-ship for herself and share an office with Jimmy. Jimmiy is intrigued by the idea, but advises Kim to move quickly on a client she has engaged: the Mesa Verde Bank. Jimmy knows that HHM will attempt to seize rights to the case as soon as they realize Kim is resigning. Kim is hesitant on the idea at first, but upon overhearing Howard after delivering her resignation letter, realizes Jimmy was right all along and quickly takes steps to retain Mesa Verde's services for herself. Meanwhile, Jimmy procures an old dentist's office for renovation into the joint venture. He also begins producing his own personal ad, enlisting the aid of his former college video crew and some of his elder clients. Prior to Breaking Bad After the events of "Better Call Saul," Jimmy abandons his given name and develops his old pseudonym Saul Goodman (from his watch scam with Marco in Cicero) into a fully fledged identity. He obtains legal accreditation for his new identity, and opens a new office, this one far more gaudy and clichéd than his former offices. Taking his former style as Jimmy to a whole new level, the newly anointed Saul practices far more aggressively than before, and quickly gains a reputation for his ability to acquit local criminals such as Emilio Koyama. Breaking Bad 'Season 2' .]] When Badger is arrested for selling blue meth, Saul is sent to negotiate with him. It comes to call his attention that Hank Schrader and Steven Gomez, two DEA agents, are trying to interrogate Badger. Deducing they were interested in his client, he made a deal with the DEA for Badger to testify against his dealer “Heisenberg.” Later that day, Walter White and Jesse Pinkman decide to look for Saul Goodman in his office. Walt, posing as Badger’s uncle "Mr. Mayhew", hires Saul to keep Badger out of prison. Citing rumors that Heisenberg's associate crushed a man's head with an ATM, Walt asks if Badger should fear reprisals if he snitches. "The guy who got his head smooshed used to be a client of mine. His wife killed him," Saul replies. He plans to get Badger "singing like a canary." "Ten thousand dollars," Walt blurts out before succumbing to a coughing fit. He doesn't want Saul to throw the case, but "no talking to the DEA," he says. Saul then kicks Walt out of his office for trying to bribe him. That night, Jesse and Walt don their ski masks, kidnap Saul, and haul him to a freshly dug shallow grave in a desert wasteland. "This afternoon, an associate of ours offered you ten thousand dollars," Jesse tells him. "You shoulda taken it." Saul informs them that he doesn't take bribes from strangers. Jesse, gun aimed at Saul, instructs him to give Badger "the best legal representation ever," but says that Saul is dead if anyone snitches to the DEA. "Why don't you just kill Badger?" Saul suggests, but Jesse insists that's not an option. Walt doubles over coughing and Saul recognizes him as the "Mr. Mayhew" from his office. Saul instructs Walt and Jesse to remove their masks and "put a dollar in my pocket - both of you." Now protected by attorney-client privilege, they hear Saul's assessment of their situation: "Somebody's going to prison. It's just a matter of who." In an interview with Hank, Badger describes Heisenberg as an older bald man. Back in Saul's office, Saul hands Walt the dossier for a bald ex-convict known as "Jimmy In-'N-Out," who will go to jail as Heisenberg for a fee. "Conscience gets expensive, doesn't it?" Saul comments when he outlines the cost: $80,000 - $50,000 of which Saul takes as a finder's fee - plus a pound of meth. The next day, Albuquerque police and the DEA stake out the bus stop bench where Badger was busted. After some maneuvering to get Badger to sit next to the correct bald man, Jimmy's arrest goes down as planned. Later, Saul visits Walt in his classroom, chiding him for being so easy to locate. Walt asks if Saul is blackmailing him, but Saul says that he isn't. Referencing The Godfather, Saul offers to play Tom Hagen to Walt's Vito Corleone. "I'm no Vito Corleone," Walt says. "No shit," Saul replies. "Right now, you're Fredo." Walt has the right product but not the right connections and strategy, which Saul can provide. "If you want to make more money, and keep the money that you make," Saul says, adding his TV flourish, "Better Call Saul!" Later on, Saul gives Walt a tutorial on money laundering. After all the costs associated with Badger’s arrest, he only has $16,000 left. "Congratulations," cracks Saul, "You've just left your family a second hand Subaru." Walt lets on that he might not have much longer to live, but he intends to cook a lot more. "Make hay while the sun is still shining," Saul agrees . Some days later, one of Jesse's dealers is shot dead. Saul, Walt and Jesse have a meeting to decide what their next move is going to be. Walt reveals to Saul that they've got thirty-eight pounds of meth and no distribution. "You're sitting on a gold mine." Walt and Jesse "suck at peddling meth," he concludes, but he offers to put them in touch with a cautious, low profile businessman who'll buy their product in bulk . After successfully selling the thirty-eight pounds to Saul's contact, Walt complains that he cannot make use of the money. Luckily, Saul knows of a hacker in Belarus who could launder Walt's money through his son's website. It would look like thousands of people were donating to "Mr. Walter H. White… Cancer Saint," Saul explains. "I'm getting a warm and fuzzy feeling just thinking about it" . When Jane Margolis dies, Saul sends one of his employees, Mike Ehrmantraut, to clean up her apartment from any evidence linking her and Jesse with the use of drugs. Later on, Saul also informs Walt about Jesse living in a place called "The Shooting Gallery" . 'Season 3' As a result of the Wayfarer Flight 515 aerial disaster, Saul began organizing a class-action lawsuit for victims of the crash. At one point, Saul says, "Victim's families would be great, but I'll take anyone on the ground who suffered emotionally." It is possible that Saul gained a great deal of publicity from representing victims (under a very loose definition of the term). Saul also began wearing the Wayfarer 515 blue ribbon to show his support for the victims. Following the success of the large sale to Gus – which leads to Saul buying better suits – Saul pushes Walt to take Gus’s lucrative offer to continue cooking. He also accepts a job from Jesse, using Jesse’s half of the earnings to purchase his aunt’s house at a dramatically lowered price – strong-arming Jesse’s parents and attorney with a potential lawsuit over the undisclosed meth lab Jesse was running out of the basement. After Walt reveals Skyler White has threatened to expose him, Saul hires Mike to bug the White house as insurance. Forced to leave early when Walt comes home, Mike witnesses the Cousins entering with an axe, and quickly places a call to Gus to call them off. Per Gus’s direction, Saul has not been informed of this threat to Walt . Saul visits Jesse's house later on asking Jesse to try to convince Walt into going back to cooking meth . Mike later brings Walt to Saul after Walt creates a disturbance at Skyler’s office, and attempts to talk Walt into cooking meth again. Admitting that he bugged Walt’s house and making an off-color comment about Skyler, Saul is attacked and subsequently fired by Walt. Furious, Saul shuts down the laundering of Walt’s drug money. Jesse then approaches Saul with two bags of meth he has cooked himself using Walt’s procedure, and asks to set up a deal. He meets Victor under a bridge to make the exchange, only to see he has been given half of the money – the other half went to Walt . Saul sets up an intervention between Walt and Jesse offering to give Walt a percentage of Jesse’s future deals. Walt returns Jesse’s half of the first deal, coldly informing both of them that he has now accepted Gus’s offer and will be cutting Jesse out of the business. Quickly dumping Jesse in favor of the much higher profits Walt can produce, Saul is once again hired to launder money for Walt – this time for a dramatically reduced payment of five percent . When Hank successfully deduces the existence of the RV, Walt calls Saul in a panic. Saul is at a loss, and scolds him for not having a "self-destruct" mechanism like the Starship Enterprise. After Hank locates the RV with Walt and Jesse trapped inside, Walt calls Saul for assistance. Saul has his secretary Francesca masquerade as a law enforcement official to make Hank believe his wife has been severely injured in a car accident. Saul appears regretful of his part in the cruel ruse and discards the phone used to make the call, while Francesca tells him she should be paid more for this sort of work . Saul visits Jesse at the hospital after the latter is brutally attacked by Hank in result of their actions previously. Saul takes pictures of Jesse's state and jokes that Walt is now the "pretty one." Jesse plans to ruin Hank's life and maybe even give up Heisenberg's identity if he gets caught cooking again. Out of the room, Walt tells Saul that Jesse will eventually calm down, to which Saul replies "If he doesn't, there may come a time to talk options" . Saul later tries to convince Jesse into buying a property to launder his money earned selling drugs, but Jesse declines the offer . Walt later introduces Skyler to Saul as they have a meeting in Saul's office trying to think in a scheme to launder their money. Saul suggests that they buy a laser tag franchise, but Skyler comments that Walt buying a laser tag wouldn't make any sense. "Walt's a scientist," Saul replies, "scientists love lasers." They later drive to a car wash where Walt used to work before. Skyler comments that Walt has history with the proprietor of this car wash, it would make even more sense for him to buy it. Saul thinks otherwise, since they don't have an inside man, it will be difficult to buy the car wash . Later, Walter comes to Saul to inform him that Jesse found out that the men who killed his dealer and friend some weeks earlier are actually working for Gus and he is planning on killing them. They plan to get Jesse arrested, but Mike finds out about the plan and intervenes on Gus' orders, this plan is not going to happen . Jesse eventually attacks the dealers against Gus' orders and Walt saves Jesse's life killing both dealers. Mike starts a manhunt for Jesse, but Saul helps Walt by hiding Jesse in the laser tag arcade. Mike forces Saul to give him information on Jesse's whereabouts, even threatening to severely injure Saul in case he doesn't collaborate. Saul gives Mike a fake address to keep him away for some hours and then drives Walt to meet Jesse at the arcade. He warns them that it's just a matter of time before Mike realizes that the address is fake, but he is dismissed by Walt . 'Season 4' Following Gale Boetticher's murder, Walt and Jesse are taken to the superlab and held there by Mike and Victor until Gus Fring arrives to deal with the situation. Meanwhile, Saul searches his office for bugs, believing that Walt and Jesse were murdered by Gus and he would be next. He receives a call from Skyler asking where Walt is. Returning her call by payphone, Saul lies and assures her Walt is fine; then he tells his new bodyguard, Huell Babineaux, that they might need to leave town . Later, after Skyler's unsuccessful attempt to buy the car wash from Bogdan for money laundering purposes, Saul touts a nail salon as the best way to launder money as he meets with Walt and Skyler at the condo. "Ya bombed. It happens," Saul says about Skyler's attempt to purchase the car wash. Bogdan just needs an "attitude adjustment," contends Skyler, though she rules out instigating an IRS audit, INS raid or any violence. While surrounded by the suds from Holly's baby bottles, Skyler is struck by an idea and calls Saul. Outside the car wash, a man wearing a Bluetooth headset who appears to be some kind of environmental inspector (Saul's associate Patrick Kuby) shows water samples to Bogdan and declares they're full of contaminants. Bogdan must replace his entire wastewater treatment system, and the state requires he cease operations until it's back up to code, the inspector-type says. Skyler, feeding lines to Kuby, is eventually successful and purchases the car wash . Meanwhile, Walt tells Saul he fears that Hank will connect Jesse to Gale's murder. Saul says there's nothing to worry about, but Walt catalogs his woes: Gus wants to kill him, Jesse is out of control and Gus will eventually perceive Jesse as too big a risk. There's also "this stupid car wash" he's buying with Skyler, who naively thinks Walt can walk away after his contract with Gus expires. Saul mentions that as a last resort, Walt can pay to have a "disappearer" vanish his family off the grid and set them up with new identities. Walt rejects the idea, and they're stuck at an impasse . Later, when Walter learns Jesse is off somewhere with Mike, Walt races through Albuquerque, dodging traffic while shouting instructions to Saul on his cell phone. If Walt doesn't return within 24 hours, Saul is to deliver all of Walt's money to Skyler . On a later date, Walt slumps in a chair at Saul's office while Saul handles the fallout from his client's "little joy ride" (racing around recklessly, doing doughnuts with, and ultimately setting on fire the Dodge Challenger Skyler made him return). Walt admits that the pressure of knowing Gus wants to kill him is getting to him, and then inquires about hit men. "Wrong answer!" blurts Saul, pointing out that any for hire assailant would likely know Mike, and have to outmaneuver him. Walt tells Saul that he tried to kill Gus himself but couldn't get near him. "Why not ask your partner?" suggests Saul . Saul visits Andrea Cantillo at a house she's just rented in a nice neighborhood and delivers cash from Jesse. Afterward, in Saul's car, a concerned Jesse asks about the house and Andrea's son, Brock Cantillo. Saul then prods Jesse to check on them himself . In his office, Saul mumbles to himself, "This is a bad idea," before Ted enters. Saul then informs Ted that his long-lost "Great Aunt Birgit" from Luxembourg has left him $621,552.33 -- almost precisely the amount of his debt to the I.R.S. Saul visits the car wash and shows Skyler a credit report indicating that Ted leased a Mercedes three hours after receiving Walt's money. He won't be able to pay the income tax bill in full -- and clearly wasn't going to do so anyway . At his home, Ted returns Skyler's money to her because paying off the IRS with Walt's gambling winnings "feels wrong" and in any case won't solve Ted's other money woes. Skyler accuses Ted of blackmailing her for more cash. Stung by the charge, Ted emphatically denies it but still refuses to pay the IRS. After leaving Ted's house, Skyler calls Saul. By phone, Saul informs Skyler that Ted doesn't own a gun or have a panic button on his alarm system. Skyler replies that she doesn't want anyone hurt, just for Ted to write the IRS a check. Saul tells Skyler that he'll assign his "A-team" to deal with Ted and sends Kuby and Huell. The two visit Ted at home, order him to write the check, and tell him they'll be staying until it clears. After signing the check, Ted tries to make a run for it but ends up tripping on a throw rug and knocking himself out on a kitchen island . In Saul's office, Huell is describing the mishap with Ted when Walt storms in, saying that he needs to contact Saul's connection who can "disappear" the White family and give them new identities. It'll cost at least half a million dollars, says Saul, and everyone must be packed and ready before Walt makes the call . Walt asks Saul to inform the DEA that Gus has a hit out on Hank. "My brother-in-law doesn't deserve to die because of this," pleads Walt. Saul reluctantly agrees to alert the DEA about the hit but refuses to finger Gus. Walt tells Saul to make the call in an hour . After finishing a cook, a laundry truck drops off Jesse at his car, which he now parks in the desert to avoid arousing DEA suspicion. Jesse calls Walt, who doesn't answer, then listens to increasingly frantic messages on his own voicemail from Saul. One of which urges Jesse to come to the law office, pronto. When Jesse arrives he is aggressively patted down by Saul's bodyguard, Huell, until Saul interrupts. Saul declares, "They're here, the end times," and stuffs Jesse's meth money in a duffel bag for him. "I'm outta here," says Saul, at least until things cool down. Confused, Jesse asks what's going on and learns that Gus threatened to kill Walt and his family . At the hospital where Brock is being treated, two Albuquerque Police Department detectives then approach Jesse and summon him to police headquarters to question him about his theory that Brock might have ricin poisoning, which the boy's doctors think might actually be the case. Jesse says that he must have seen it on TV. "Sometimes your brain makes these connections," he explains. When the detectives press him further, Jesse stops talking and demands his attorney, Saul Goodman. At the law office, Saul's secretary, Francesca, busy shredding documents, doesn't respond to Walt banging on the office door. He then shatters the glass door with a piece of cement and enters. Francesca, furious about the mess, refuses to provide Saul's whereabouts unless Walt pays her $25,000, well more than he has on him. At police headquarters, Jesse stonewalls the detectives until Saul arrives. Privately, Saul tells Jesse that he'll have to remain in police custody pending a toxicology report on Brock, but that it might be just as well because someone tried to kill Walt in his own home. Following their meeting, Walt rendezvous with Saul, who relays information from Jesse about Gus' visits to Hector Salamanca, also known as "Tio." Walt doesn't recognize their significance until Saul says that Gus gloated about Tio's family line ending and later told Jesse that Tio killed someone close to him. "They're enemies," Walt deduces. This information supplied by Jesse through Saul later becomes vital in Walt's plan on getting rid of Gustavo Fring . 'Season 5' Saul visits Skyler at the car wash and cryptically and solemnly warns her the police may call her about Ted. "Ted's dead?" she asks, tearing up. "No, he just woke up," Saul says. Later, at Saul's office, Walt scolds Saul for giving Skyler $622,000 to pay off Ted's tax debt. Saul reminds Walt that he put himself on the line by participating in Brock's poisoning (Saul had Huell lift the ricin cigarette from Jesse). Thrusting the ricin cigarette at him, Saul tells Walt that their business relationship is done. Walt bridles at that, backing Saul into a corner of the office. "We're done when I say we're done," he says . After deciding that they will continue to cook, Walt and Jesse visit Saul to discuss finding a new venue for the lab, preferably nearby and not in an RV. Saul says an in-town venue will be difficult, but Walt snaps, "If Gus can manage it, then so can we." Jesse reports that he was able to find all the precursor chemicals except for methylamine. Walt encourages Jesse to keep looking for methylamine, but Jesse doubts he'll be able to scare any up. When Saul advises they pull out of the meth business, Walt snaps back that he's broke. "Does that seem like an acceptable stopping point to you?" . Mike waits outside Saul's office while Huell guards the door. Inside, Walt and Jesse assuage Saul's doubts about working with Mike again, who threatened to break Saul's legs. They let Mike in and he lays down ground rules: He runs the business, Walt and Jesse cover production. Saul privately asks Walt if he's okay with the arrangement, but Walt's unfazed: "He handles the business, and I handle him." Saul takes the team on a tour of potential new lab venues, but Walt, Jesse, and Mike nix them all, spotting logistical problems with each. Jesse and Mike are ready to dismiss the final venue, a pest control business, but Walt demurs, declaring, "It's perfect." The next day, the four watch the pest-control team as it tents an infested home. Walt explains his plan: If they cook inside houses undergoing fumigation, no one will bother them or question strange smells. They can hide in plain sight. Saul says the pest crew, run by a man named Ira, runs a burglary operation on the side and knows how to keep secrets. Mike suggests a vote. "Why?" asks Walt: he's already convinced, and so is Jesse . Later, tending to his errand, Mike visits the DEA offices with Saul. Saul tells Hank and Gomez that their ongoing surveillance of Mike is tantamount to stalking, and that he's filed for a Temporary Restraining Order with a sympathetic judge. Afterward, Saul tells Mike that the TRO won't hold up long, and Hank will be back on his tail with a vengeance within twenty-four hours. "It's enough," Mike says . Even after Saul's efforts, Mike is eventually caught by the DEA and is on the run. In his office, Saul worries that Mike will flip if captured. "He won't flip," Jesse insists, but Walt worries that one of his nine men will. Mike then calls, asking Saul to fetch his go-bag. With the police watching Saul's movements, and Jesse out of the business, Walt volunteers to retrieve it . Later, Jesse admits that Saul told him that Walt "took care" of Mike's men in prison . Jesse later visits Saul's office with the two bags of $5 million in cash - his pay for selling his share of the methylamine - given to him by Walt. Jesse, horrified by the "blood money," wants Saul to give the half the money to Kaylee Ehrmantraut (he fears the worst about Mike and wants his granddaughter to be looked after) and the other half to the parents of Drew Sharp, the young boy who was killed as a result of their methylamine train heist. Saul is quick to point out the flaws of this plan - how it will merely raise more questions - and Jesse leaves his office. Saul then calls Walt to inform him of the situation, and after a conversation with Walt, Jesse is saddened and guilt-ridden but nonetheless comes to terms with Saul's reasoning. Desperate to get rid of the money, he resorts to throwing stacks of money into peoples' yards as he drives by . When Hank discovers that Walt was Heisenberg the entire time, Walt goes to Saul's office so they can discuss what to do with this problem. Saul later suggests that Walt send Hank on "a trip to Belize" like he did with Mike. Walt refuses and angrily rebukes Saul for even thinking of that. Saul has Huell and Kuby collect Walt's money from the storage bin, and Walt gives Saul a cut of the earnings, and a little extra that's meant for Walt as "insurance" in case Walt needs Saul later on. . Saul later bails Jesse out after Jesse gets arrested for throwing money out of his car window, and scolds him for not calling him sooner. He calls Walt, which leads to the three of them meeting in the desert, where Walt convinces Jesse to leave New Mexico, using the disappearer Saul mentioned to Walt earlier. While making the final preparations for Jesse's leave, Saul scolds him for smoking weed, and orders him to give him the rest of the drugs. When Jesse refuses, Saul has Huell pickpocket it from Jesse. Later, when Jesse discovers it missing, he realizes that Huell must have pickpocketed it from him, and realizes that Huell pickpocketed the ricin cigarette from him too. Walt is the one behind Brock being poisoned, and Saul helped him. Jesse returns to Saul's office, and brutally assaults him. Saul tries to grab a gun from his desk drawer, but Jesse grabs it first and points it at him, accusing him of having had Huell steal the ricin cigarette from him, and helped poison Brock. Saul admits that he helped, but tells Jesse that Walt didn't tell him of his motives, and that he wouldn't have done it if he knew what Walt was going to do. Jesse leaves, and Saul calls Walt to warn him . That evening, Saul and Kuby meet Walt in the parking lot of the hotel the White family are staying at to discuss their next move. Kuby says that he's doing everything he can to find Jesse. Saul suggests Walt 'put Jesse out to pasture' but Walt rules this out immediately, telling Saul to never hand out this idea again . The next day, Saul meets Walt at the car wash. He's concerned that Huell has gone missing and is wearing a bullet-proof vest. Walt assures him that Jesse is not on a killing spree and everything is going to be fine . Several days later, after Heisenberg's real identity is finally exposed and Walt is on the run as one of the most wanted criminals in the country, Saul avails himself of the disappearer's services. The disappearer, a man named Ed, starts the process of setting him up with a new identity in Nebraska, to Saul's obvious displeasure. Until he can be safely moved, he has to hole-up in the basement of the extractor's shop. To Saul's surprise, he shares the basement with Walt, who is also waiting to be extracted out of New Mexico. Walt tries to convince Saul that they need to stick together so they can plot their revenge on the the people that killed Hank, but Saul refuses, trying to explain that he is no longer a lawyer, only another civilian trying to make a living. Walt even tries to intimidate Saul, but erupts into a severe coughing fit due to the cancer. "It's over," Saul says, and he sets off to Nebraska to start his new life . 'After Breaking Bad' Assuming a new identity as "Gene", Saul Goodman is seen working behind the counter at a shopping-mall Cinnabon located in Omaha, Nebraska. He becomes tense when a customer seems to be staring at him but is instantly relieved when the man passes by him to greet a friend. Later, inside an old, modest home, Saul pours himself a glass of liquor and watches TV, flipping through channels. He then rummages around for a VHS inside a shoebox and pops it in the VCR. The tape's contents are revealed to be a copy of his TV advertisements back in the days when Saul was still an esteemed lawyer. As the ads play, Saul begins to weep . At the end of another work day, Saul and his co-workers are cleaning and locking up for the night. He tells them to get home safe while he takes out the garbage. In the garbage room, the door (only being able to open from the outside) shuts, locking Saul in the room while he throws the garbage in the dumpster. Saul yells and calls out for anyone for several minutes until he decides to use the emergency exit. However, opening the door would trigger the alarm and the police would show up. Still paranoid, Saul decides not to open the door and resumes kicking and yelling for someone to open the door. After several attempts, Saul sits against the wall and finds a rusty nail and hold it up to his arm. A couple hours later the custodian (who is also taking out garbage) finally opens the door and Saul walks out right past him. On the wall, it has "S.G was here" carved in the wall by Saul . Another day at the mall: Saul is taking his lunch break on the second floor, away from the hustle and bustle, when a young man passes by him and proceeds to duck into a photo booth. As he does so, Saul notices several DVD cases falling from the boy's coat and immediately realizes the kid has been shoplifting. When a security guard and police officer show up hot on the boy's heels, and immediately ask "Gene" if he has seen the accused, Saul can only nod wordlessly in the direction of the photo booth. Watching helplessly as the shoplifter is pulled out and cuffed, Saul's old instints flare up, and he suddenly shouts at the boy to say nothing and hire a lawyer. Realizing he has just acted out of character for a simple fast-food manager, Saul manages to make it back to the Cinnabon and begins prepping more food before the shock overwhelms him and he passes out in a dead faint. Personality and traits Dressed in flashy suits, Saul maintains extensive connections within the criminal underworld, and serves as a go-between connecting drug distributors, evidence removers, impersonators, and other criminals-for-hire. Despite his flamboyant appearance and mannerisms — punctuated by his outrageous low-budget TV commercials — Saul is a highly competent lawyer who is able to solve problems and find loopholes in order to protect his clients. He is also not without integrity as he is shown to honor the ethical concerns of his profession, particularly the attorney–client privilege, and is reluctant to be associated with violence or murder unless absolute necessary. He has served as an adviser for Walter, Jesse, Gus, Mike, and even for Skyler, whom he also helped acquire a car wash in order to launder Walter's drug money. With a repertoire that includes small-time drug busts, fraudulent insurance claims, and fat people class actions, Saul is easily found in the Albuquerque yellow pages. With a sleazy manner that is sometimes bordering on comical, he might seem disreputable to police and certain other lawyers. Despite his fantastically shady appearance, Saul is indeed a highly competent extra-legal operator, adept at sniffing out legal loopholes and able to negotiate cherry deals on the behalf of his clients. Many, especially those in law enforcement, are presumably unhappy with him, but for most he is a savior (who takes cash up front). His slick legal savvy keeps him on the right sight of the law, but he has been known to dabble in the criminal arts. He also employs the services of a veteran private investigator named Mike, who respects Saul for just what he is and executes often illegal commands from Saul and Gus, such as cleaning up crime scenes and bugging homes. Saul doesn't have much of a moral compass, however; even murder doesn't faze him unless it somehow endangers his interests, and he's always happy to put one client's interests above those of another, for the right price. However, Saul's ethical limits are glimpsed when he tried to cut ties with Walt after learning that he had been used to send a young boy to the hospital. Saul's made-up name is a play on words to better attract clients, "it's all good man" becomes "Saul Goodman". Drives a white Cadillac with a license plate that reads, "LWYR UP," referring to the expression "lawyer up", used to describe the act of delegating one's representation in legal matters to an attorney. After receiving his new identity, he kept his old ads in a VHS well hidden to prevent people from discovering his identity. Known Clients * Robert Williams * Mr. Globis * Mr. Pearson * Mr. Berger * Mr. Edison * Desmond Rojas * Nacho * Mrs. Strauss * Irene Landry * Daniel Warmolt * Spooge * Wendy * Carl Bakins * Emilio Koyama * Badger * Walter White * Skyler White * Jesse Pinkman * Vamonos Pest ** Ira ** Todd Alquist ** Fernando ** Sandor * Mike Ehrmantraut Appearances ''Breaking Bad Better Call Saul Quotes Breaking Bad ''Better Call Saul Trivia *A real telephone number, (505) 503-4455 based in Albuquerque, New Mexico was created for Saul's law firm and when called it consists of Saul on an automated switchboard system with various options. It is made clear on the Better Call Saul website (www.bettercallsaul.com) and on the Breaking Bad Facebook page that this telephone number is a long distance telephone call and not toll-free. *Saul Goodman is also the name of one of the main characters in ''The Illuminatus! Trilogy. He is a police detective in this novel trilogy. *Marie Schrader & Lydia Rodarte-Quayle are the only main characters who never met Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad. Gustavo Fring met Saul Goodman at the Los Pollos Hermanos restaurant in Better Call Saul. *Saul Goodman's name, as well as his role as a problem fixing lawyer, is a play on the phrase "It's all good, man", pronounced in the vernacular "S'all good, man". This is reinforced in the Better Call Saul epsisode Hero, in which he introduces himself as Saul (including the play on words) during the flashback in which he and Marco Pasternak scam an out-of-town partygoer in Cicero. *Saul Goodman is the only main character to survive the show that wasn't in the first season. *In the episode "Uno", Jimmy relates the tale of 'Slippin' Jimmy' to two would-be crooks. Illinois, McGill's reputed birthplace, is in fact Bob Odenkirk's actual birthplace, although they were not born in the same city, but the same state. * In the episode "Nacho", it is revealed through a flashback that he was arrested and imprisoned once with the charge of assault, property damage,and the risk of being labelled as a sex offender. He seeks help from his older brother Chuck,who as a lawyer agree to help him. * In the episode " Amarillo ", Jimmy and Kim watch the movie "Ice Station Zebra" together. In Breaking Bad, Ice Station Zebra Associates is the name of Saul's company through wich he receives his payments. * The nursing home where Jimmy hosted his bingo games is the same nursing home where Hector ends up in Breaking Bad. * In the episode Marco, he receives the pinky ring he still wears in Breaking Bad from Marco's mother. *Saul's vehicles include: ** 1998 Suzuki Esteem ("Uno" – "Cobbler" & "Inflatable" – "Klick") ** 2003 Mercedes-Benz C 240 ("Cobbler" – "Inflatable") ** 1997 Cadillac DeVille ( – ) References es:Saul Goodman Category:Breaking Bad characters Category:Better Call Saul characters Category:Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul characters Category:Status: Alive Category:Law enforcements Category:Criminals Category:Walt's drug empire Category:Protagonists